NBA Rumors: Indiana Pacers wary of re-signing Lance Stephenson

Obviously the focus of the Indiana Pacers is to find a way to win game 5 and extend the Eastern Conference Finals to a sixth game on Wednesday night when they take on the Miami Heat (8:30 pm EST, ESPN).

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However, once the Pacers’ season comes to an end, no matter when that happens, they will have to answer several questions about the future of their franchise. A lot of those questions will settle around the future of center Roy Hibbert, who has no-showed several times during the postseason.

The biggest question mark facing the Pacers is the future of shooting guard Lance Stephenson. Stephenson, who became a starter after Danny Granger was injured last season (and was then traded just before this season’s trade deadline) has become a valuable player for the Pacers and could be the key to getting back into their current series. He is set to become a restricted free agent in the summer.

However, there have been a lot of questions about Stephenson’s attitude and his recent squabble with Heat forward LeBron James only furthered a a growing thought in the organization. According to Mike Wells and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com, many inside the Pacers’ organization are wary of giving Stephenson a big money contract.

"In the past three years, all of the Pacers’ core players — Hill, Hibbert, West, George — have been signed to long-term deals. Now it is Stephenson’s turn. Bird has always supported him. He stuck his neck out to draft him despite Stephenson’s checkered past and red flags. Despite Stephenson’s tantalizing talents, sources said there are many in the organization who don’t think it’s a good decision to give him a rich, long-term contract, given the way he has acted during the season."

Stephenson averaged 13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game during the regular season and is putting up 13.9 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game in the postseason.

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